Week in Review

All you hear from Democrats is that we need to spend more on education. They call it investing in our future. Which is a lie. For ‘investing in our future’ is code for shoring up teachers’ pensions. And keeping higher education doing what those in control of higher education want it to do. Produce Democrat voters. Which actually starts in our public schools. Where they teach our kids to come home and tell their parents that they are ashamed of them. For all the global warming they’ve caused. And bringing them into the world in the evil, rotten United States.

These are the things our kids seem to know about. Global warming. Slavery. Stealing land from the Native Americans. American imperialism. But ask them to name the first four presidents of the United States? Four of the greatest Americans ever to live? Those in control of our public education don’t think knowing anything about them is important. Apparently (see Rolling Stone, Groupon Show The Viral Benefits of Historical Inaccuracy by Nathan Raab posted 4/11/2014 on Forbes).

In 2007, a US Mint poll showed that only 7 percent of those surveyed could name the first four Presidents in order. A later poll by Marist was not more encouraging.

George Washington (#1) kept the Continental Army together for 8 years under circumstances few could imagine today. Near the end of the Revolutionary War his character alone put down a mutiny in the officer corps. He turned down the offer to make him king. An unprecedented act at the time. King George of Britain had said if he turned down absolute power “he will be the greatest man in the world.” And Washington did. Twice. His presence was the only thing that got the states to ratify the Constitution. And his two terms in office was the only thing that gave the United States of America a chance of succeeding. This is why there is only one man we call the Father of his Country. And only one man we call the Indispensible Man. George Washington.

John Adams (#2) was a driving force for American independence. So much so that King George could not forgive him. Had they reconciled with the mother country the king would have pardoned many patriots. But not Adams. He would hang. Adams nominated George Washington to command the Continental Army. He chose Thomas Jefferson to write the Declaration of Independence. He worked with Benjamin Franklin to negotiate the peace treaty that ended the Revolutionary War. And negotiated America’s first loan from Amsterdam bankers. The first nation to recognize and do business with the new nation (other than France). And he averted war with France following the French Revolution. Giving the fledgling nation a chance to survive.

Thomas Jefferson (#3) was the author of Declaration of Independence. The author of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom. And the Father of the University of Virginia. The three things Jefferson was most proud of and appear on his tombstone. As president his administration bought the Louisiana Territory from the French. More than doubling the size of the United States. And sent out Lewis and Clark to explore these vast new territories. And he slashed government spending wherever he could. A true believer in limited government.

James Madison (#4) is the Father of the Constitution. He wrote the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay to encourage ratification of the Constitution. The Federalist Papers are still referenced today in Constitutional law. He also helped the effort to ratify the Constitution in Virginia where he battled the great patriot Patrick Henry. Who feared a large central government. Madison served in the first Congress. Where he championed the Bill of Rights. And, later, supervised the Louisiana Purchase as President Jefferson’s Secretary of State.

It is indeed a sad commentary on our educational system that only 7% of those questioned could identify these great Americans. And it’s not a lack of money causing this. It’s a lacking in the curriculum. Choosing global warming, slavery, stealing land from the Native Americans, American imperialism, etc. Instead of teaching our kids why the United States is the greatest country in the world. Because of men like these. Who put the individual before the state. Who made freedom and liberty things we take for granted. Instead of things people can only dream of. Which is the case in much of the world today. And has been the norm throughout history.

History 101

The Inauguration Date was originally in March to allow for Long Travel Times

It was difficult to be a career politician at the federal/national level at the Founding. Thanks to the horse. The primary means of transportation over great distances. Either on horseback. Or pulled in a buggy. Neither of which provided for a comfortable ride. With that discomfort compounded by the fact you were leaving family and friends behind. People you wouldn’t see again for a very long time.

When John Adams served in the Continental Congress he rode for some two weeks through brutal winter weather on hard, frozen ground. Ground so hard and dangerous that they let the horses only walk. Whether it was traveling to Cambridge to meet with the newly appointed General Washington facing off with the British in Boston. Or riding on to the federal capital in Philadelphia. The ride was long, brutal and cold. As well as lonely. For Adams missed his wife and family when away serving his country. Which he did often. And longed to return home.

James Madison was a Virginian. And hated traveling up to the federal capital in Philadelphia. And then later in New York. For he hated being away from his wife. And he hated those long rides on hard, bumpy roads. As Madison suffered from some digestive disorders. Leaving him with chronic discomfort in his abdomen. And lower. For he probably suffered from hemorrhoids, too. Making those long, bumpy rides unbearable. This is why the inauguration date was originally in March instead of January like it is today. They had to allow for long travel times and bad weather for the new office holders to get to their offices. Unlike today where you can fly from anywhere in the United States to Washington D.C. in one day.

James Reynolds had his Wife seduce and sleep with Alexander Hamilton so he could Blackmail Him

George Washington was president when the nation’s capital was in New York City. Which was a long way from Mount Vernon. Washington’s Virginian home. Other Virginians were the first Secretary of State. Thomas Jefferson. The first Attorney General. Edmund Randolph. And the first Speaker of the House. James Madison. While the first Vice President, John Adams, and the first Secretary of War, Henry Knox, came from Massachusetts. The first Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton, on the other hand, was a New Yorker. Living in New York City. Close to the capital.

Ironically, the man closest to his wife was the one to have an extramarital affair. Alexander Hamilton. Who was targeted by a couple of con people. Mr. and Mrs. Reynolds. That’s right, Mr. Reynolds used his wife, Maria, to seduce Alexander Hamilton. Including actually having sexual relations with him. Just so he, James Reynolds, could blackmail Hamilton for money. Threatening to tell Hamilton’s wife. And ruining his good reputation as a gentleman if he didn’t pay. He paid. For awhile. And with his own money. Reynolds was later arrested for counterfeiting. And told the opposition party of Hamilton’s affair. Thomas Jefferson. And his fellow Republicans (the forerunner to the Democrat party, not the Republican Party of today whose first president was Abraham Lincoln).

Thomas Jefferson loved his wife and hated being apart from her. The last place he wanted to be in 1775/1776 was at the Continental Congress in Philadelphia. A lonely year spent a very long way from his wife. Who was sickly. And died in 1782. Jefferson was at her bedside when she passed. And he was devastated. He had promised her he would never remarry. And he never did. He later accepted the post as United States Minister to France. A much greater distance from Virginia. Which is probably the first time he wanted to be far away from his beloved Monticello. To escape the desolation of life without his wife.

The Founding Fathers served Reluctantly and didn’t leave Office Richer than when they entered Office

Hamilton and Jefferson hated each other. They vehemently disagreed with each other’s vision for the United States. When Jefferson got wind of the Hamilton affair he pounced on it. Well, not so much him. But the Republican Party which he was the de facto head of. And a guy by the name of James Callender. A pamphleteer and journalist. And all around scandalmonger. He made the Hamilton affair public for the Jefferson Republicans. Who, being men of the Enlightenment, would not sink to such a low level. But Callender would. And did. Who Jefferson helped with some financial support. But Callender ended up in jail for sedition. And when he got out he wanted Jefferson to make him post master general of Virginia in return for services rendered. Jefferson refused. Then Callender turned on Jefferson. Revealing that it was him that was bankrolling his journalistic scandal mongering. And that he fathered children with his slave Sally Hemings.

George Washington was the commanding general of the Continental Army from 1775 until 1783. And he spent most of that time with his army in the field. Away from his beloved Mount Vernon. Just after he returned to civilian life came the Philadelphia Convention. And a new nation. The first president of that new nation? Much to his displeasure it was him. George Washington. Who was the only one people were willing to give the powers of the new federal government to. And after sacrificing so much he did not want to see it all be for nothing. So he served one term as president. Then another. In New York. A long way from Virginia. And pretty much hated every minute of it. Especially the bickering between his ‘children’. Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. He was never happier than when he left office in 1797. Sadly, he lived just shy of three years in retirement.

The Founding Fathers hated being in office. They hated being away from home. And the long travel time to and from home. Which meant when they were serving in office they did not see their family and friends. Unlike today. Where modern transportation allows career politicians to enjoy the graft in Washington. While breaking it up with numerous vacations back home. Without having to endure two weeks of bouncy rides with hemorrhoids. Or riding horseback in blowing snow. Being a career politician today is like being part of an aristocracy. Where you travel first class. And live first class. Unlike the Spartan loneliness at the Founding. And the animus. Washington’s, Jefferson’s, Madison’s and Hamilton’s lives all got worse from serving. Washington was cheated out of a long retirement he more than earned. Jefferson suffered bitter loneliness after losing his wife and probably did turn to the comfort of a slave. (Sally Hemings had accompanied him to Paris to care for his daughter. And later was a house servant. Though he didn’t legally free her and her children from slavery they did live their lives out as free people after he died. Which was probably a compromise by Jefferson to reconcile his feelings for her while protecting his historical legacy). Something that blemishes his reputation to this day. John Adams and Thomas Jefferson went from practically best friends to bitter enemies before they left Washington (though they rekindled their friendship later in retirement). James Madison was the father of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Believed in a strong federal government and wrote the Federalist Papers with Alexander Hamilton to help ratify the Constitution. Then he switch sides. And sided with Thomas Jefferson and fought for limited government. Then he was president during the War of 1812 and believed in a strong federal government again after struggling through that war with a weak government. Madison spent his later years rewriting letters and correspondence. Making large revisions to his historical legacy. While Alexander Hamilton’s stand on principle ultimately led to his death in a duel with Aaron Burr.

Washington, Jefferson and Madison all returned home after serving as president poorer than when they left for Washington. That just doesn’t happen today. Today once you get elected to a federal office in Washington you return home a millionaire. Because being a professional politician today pays very well. Which is why there is less standing on principle in Washington and more doing what it takes to remain in power. Such as lying to the American people. “If you like your health insurance and your doctor you can keep your health insurance and doctor.” The Founding Fathers served reluctantly. And their lives were worse for serving. But the country was far better off because they did. And that’s something else that just doesn’t happen today.

History 101

Merchants raise their Prices when the Monetary Authority depreciates the Currency

What is inflation? A depreciation of the currency. By adding more money into the money supply each piece of currency becomes less valuable. Let’s assume our currency is whiskey. In bottles. Whiskey has value because people are willing to pay for it. And because we are willing to pay for it we are willing to accept it as legal tender. Because we can always trade it to others. Who can drink it. Or they can trade it with others.

Now let’s say the monetary authority wants to stimulate economic activity. Which they try to do by expanding the money supply. So there is more money available to borrow. And because there is more money available to borrow interest rates are lower. Hence making it easy for people to borrow money. But the monetary authority doesn’t want to make more whiskey. Because that is costly to do. Instead, they choose an easier way of expanding the money supply. By watering down the bottles of whiskey.

Now pretend you are a merchant. And people are coming in with the new watered-down whiskey. What do you do? You know the whiskey is watered down. And that if you go and try to resell it you’re not going to get what you once did. For people typically drink whiskey for that happy feeling of being drunk. But with this water-downed whiskey it will take more drinks than it used to take to get drunk. So what do you as a merchant do when the money is worth less? You raise your prices. For it will take more bottles of lesser-valued whiskey to equal the purchasing power of full-valued whiskey. And if they water down that whiskey too much? You just won’t accept it as legal tender. Because it will be little different from water. And you can get that for free from any well or creek. Yes, water is necessary to sustain life. But no one will pay ‘whiskey’ prices for it when they can drink it from a well or a creek for free.

It was while in the Continental Army that Alexander Hamilton began thinking about a Central Bank

During the American Revolutionary War we had a very weak central government. The Continental Congress. Which had no taxing authority. Which posed a problem in fighting the Revolutionary War. Because wars are expensive. You need to buy arms and supplies for your army. You have to feed your army. And you have to pay your army. The Continental Congress paid for the Revolution by asking states to contribute to the cause. Those that did never gave as much as the Congress asked for. They got a lot of money from France. As we were fighting their long-time enemy. And we borrowed some money from other European nations. But it wasn’t enough. So they turned to printing paper money.

This unleashed a brutal inflation. Because everyone was printing money. The central government. And the states. Prices soared. Merchants didn’t want to accept it as legal tender. Preferring specie instead. Because you can’t print gold and silver. So you can’t depreciate specie like you can paper money. All of this just made life in the Continental Army worse. For they were hungry, half-naked and unpaid. And frustrating for men like Alexander Hamilton. Who served on General Washington’s staff. Hamilton, and many other officers in the Continental Army, saw how the weakness of the central government almost lost the war for them.

It was while in the army that Hamilton began thinking about a central bank. But that’s all he did. For there was not much support for a central government let alone a central bank. That would change, though, after the Constitutional Convention of 1787 created the United States of America. And America’s first president, George Washington, chose his old aide de camp as his treasury secretary. Alexander Hamilton. A capitalist who understood finance.

Despite the Carnage from the Subprime Mortgage Crisis the Fed is still Printing Money

At the time the new nation’s finances were in a mess. Few could make any sense of them. But Hamilton could. He began by assuming the states’ war debts. Added them to the national war debt. Which he planned on paying off by issuing new debt. That he planned on servicing with new excise taxes. And he would use his bank to facilitate all of this. The First Bank of the United States. Which faced fierce opposition from Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Who opposed it for a couple of reasons. For one they argued it wasn’t constitutional. There was no central bank enumerated in the Constitution. And the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution stated that any power not enumerated to the new federal government belonged to the states. And that included banking. A central bank would only further consolidate power in the new federal government. By consolidating the money. Transferring it from the local banks. Which they feared would benefit the merchants, manufacturers and speculators in the north. By making cheap money available for them to make money with money. Which is the last thing people who believed America’s future was an agrarian one of yeoman farmers wanted to do.

They fought against the establishment of the bank. But failed. The bank got a 20 year charter. Jefferson and Madison would later have a change of heart on a central bank. For it helped Jefferson with the Louisiana Purchase. And like it or not the country was changing. It wasn’t going to be an agrarian one. America’s future was an industrial one. And that required credit. Just as Alexander Hamilton thought. So after the War of 1812, after the charter of the First Bank of the United States had expired, James Madison signed into law a 20-year charter for the Second Bank of the United States. Which actually did some of the things Jefferson and Madison feared. It concentrated a lot of money and power into a few hands. Allowing speculators easy access to cheap money. Which they borrowed and invested. Creating great asset bubbles. And when they burst, great depressions. Because of that paper money. Which they printed so much of that it depreciated the dollar. And caused asset prices to soar to artificial heights.

Andrew Jackson did not like the bank. For he saw it creating a new noble class. A select few were getting rich and powerful. Something the Americans fought to get away from. When the charter for the Second Bank of the United States was set to expire Congress renewed the charter. Because of their friends at the bank. And their friends who profited from the bank. But when they sent it to Andrew Jackson for his signature he vetoed the bill. And Congress could not override it. Sensing some blowback from the bank Jackson directed that they transfer the government’s money out of the Second Bank of the United States. And deposited it into some state banks. The president of the bank, Nicholas Biddle, did not give up, though. For he could hurt those state banks. Such as calling in loans. Which he did. Among other things. To try and throw the country into a depression. So he could blame it on the president’s anti-bank policies. And get his charter renewed. But it didn’t work. And the Second Bank of the United States was no more.

National banks versus local banks. Hard money (specie) versus paper money. Nobility versus the common people. They’ve argued the same arguments throughout the history of the United States. But we never learn anything. We never learn the ultimate price of too much easy money. Even now. For here we are. Suffering through the worst recession since the Great Depression. Because our current central bank, the Federal Reserve System, likes to print paper money. And create asset bubbles. Their last being the one that burst into the subprime mortgage crisis. And despite the carnage from that they’re still printing money. Money that the rich few are borrowing to invest in the stock market. Speculators. Who are making a lot of money. Buying and selling assets. Thanks to the central bank’s inflationary policies that keep increasing prices.

Politics 101

Trusting that only Good People will Serve in Government is Sheer Folly

History has been a struggle for power. Those who wanted it fought those who had it. And those who had it tried to eliminate anyone who didn’t have it but wanted it. So people have killed each other since the dawn of time for power. Making for a rather Hobbesian existence. “Solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” A quote from Thomas Hobbes’ Leviathan. Where he posits that only an all powerful dictator can provide a just society. Otherwise there would be great unrest and civil wars. Such as was going on in England at the time he wrote Leviathan.

England, though, would choose a non-Hobbesian path. Choosing to restrict the powers of their monarch with a represented body of the people. Parliament. Evolving into what John Adams once called the best system of government. A constitutional monarchy where power was balanced between the few, the many and the one. The few, the rich, paid the taxes that the one, the king, spent. The common people were the many. Who had a say in what the rich and the king could do. So everyone had a say. And no one group, the majority, the minority or the one, could do whatever they wanted. Which is why John Adams once thought it was the best system of government.

John Adams wanted a strong executive in the new United States. Not a hereditary king. But something close to the king of England. Who would advance the new nation to greatness. And with disinterested men of the Enlightenment serving in the new government Adams didn’t worry about any abuses of power. For this wasn’t Great Britain. But not everyone had Adams’ confidence in the nobility of men. Worrying that given the chance they would try to form a new nobility. As James Madison said in Federalist 51, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary.” And that was the problem. Men are not angels. And trusting that only good men would serve in government was sheer folly. So we should form governments under the assumption that bad people would reach positions of power. And thus limit the power of government.

Today both Houses of Congress win Elections by Appealing to Populism

So the Americans settled on a similar system. They separated powers between a legislature, an executive and a judiciary. Further, they separated the legislature into two bodies. The House of Representatives. And the Senate. Representation in the House being apportioned by population. The more populous a state the greater that state’s representation. And the greater influence they had in writing law. They chose their representatives by popular vote. Making it truly the house of the people.

The states, though, feared a tyranny of the majority. Where the largest states could have their way. And force the smaller states to accept their rule. For in a true democracy the majority could vote anything into law. Such as the subjugation and oppression of a minority group. Like the Nazi Party passed legislation subjugating and oppressing the Jews. So minorities need protection from majorities. In the United States the Senate provided a check on majority rule. For each state had equal representation. Each state had two senators. And to further protect the interests of the states (and their sovereignty) the states chose their senators. A constitutional amendment changed this later. Which weakened the sovereignty of the states. By making the Senate a true democracy. Where the people could vote for the senators that promised them the most from the treasury.

Today both houses of Congress win elections by appealing to populism. Representatives and Senators are, in general, no longer ‘disinterested men of the Enlightenment’ but pure politicians trying to buy votes. Which is what James Madison worried about. The people in government are not angels. And they’re becoming less like angels as time goes on. Proving the need of a separation of powers. And a bicameral legislature. To keep any one group, or person, from amassing too much power. So there can be no tyranny of the many. No tyranny of the few. And no tyranny of the one.

The Obama Administration can’t use the Military to Kill Suspect Americans on U.S. Soil

Senator Rand Paul just recently completed a 13 hour filibuster on the floor of the Senate. To delay the vote to confirm John Brennan as CIA director. Not because he had a problem with Brennan. But because he had a problem with the Obama administration. Specifically with Attorney General Eric Holder. Senator Paul had asked Holder if the Obama administration could use a drone to kill an American on American soil without due process even if that person posed no imminent threat. The attorney general gave his answer in a letter. In which he didn’t say ‘no’. Which bothered Senator Paul. Because the Obama administration had killed an American or two on foreign soil without due process. Including the son of a guy that posed an imminent threat. While the son did not.

U.S. drone strikes have killed many terrorists overseas. And they’ve killed a lot of innocent bystanders who had the misfortune to be in the same vicinity. Such as being in the same coffee shop. Basically a policy of ‘kill them all and let God sort them out’. But you don’t hear a lot about this collateral damage. As the Obama administration simply counts all the dead from a drone strike as being a terrorist that posed an imminent threat to U.S. security. And the innocent son that was killed in a drone strike? Well, he should have chosen a better father. Or so said a member of the Obama administration. Which is what so bothered Senator Paul. For in the War on Terror the battlefield is worldwide. Including the United States. Which means given the right set of circumstances the Attorney General of the United States stated the government had the legal right to use a drone to kill an American on U.S. soil without due process.

In the United States there is a thing called the Constitution. Which guarantees American citizens due process. If you’re an American fighting Americans on foreign soil you have no Constitutional protections. And can be killed by a drone strike without due process. But if you’re on U.S. soil you have Constitutional protections. Which means the government can’t use the military to kill suspect Americans. No. On U.S. soil we have police forces. And courts. Miranda rights. On U.S. soil you have to convince a judge to issue an arrest warrant. Then you have to collect evidence to present in a trial. And then you have to convince a jury of a person’s guilt. Then and only then can you take away a person’s freedom. Or life. Thus protecting all Americans from the tyranny of the one. The tyranny of the few. And the tyranny of the many.

2012 Election

The Father of the Constitution nudged the Father of the Country out of Retirement

The Confederation Congress did not work as well as some had hoped. Despite having won their independence from Great Britain there was still no feeling of national unity. Sectional interests prevailed over national interests. Greatly affecting the ability of the national government to function. Negating the benefits of union. And offering little respect for the young nation on the world stage. The new nation simply was not taken seriously at home. Or abroad. Prompting a meeting of states delegates in Annapolis in 1786. Twelve delegates from five states showed up. The states just didn’t care enough. The convention adjourned after only three days. But not before Alexander Hamilton put a plan together for another convention in Philadelphia for the following year.

The states were happy with the way things were. They did not want to give up any of their powers to a new central authority. But the problem was that the states were fighting against each other. Trying to protect their own economic interests and their own trade. Some could extend this behavior out into the future. And they did not like what they saw. States with similar interests would form regional alliances. And these alliances would ally themselves with some of the European powers who were also on the North American continent. The northern states (having industry and commerce) would join together and ally with the industrial and commerce powerhouse Great Britain. The agrarian southern states would join together and ally with Great Britain’s eternal enemy. France. And the western territories dependent on the Mississippi River to get their agricultural goods to marker would ally with the European power in control of the Mississippi River. Spain. Who were both eternal enemies of Great Britain. And the centuries of warfare on the European continent would just extend to North America. Some saw this as the American future if they didn’t unite and put the nation’s interests ahead of sectional interests.

The Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787 almost didn’t happen. For there was as much interest in it as there was in the Annapolis Convention in 1786. James Madison, the father of the Constitution, made the meeting in Philadelphia a reality. By his persuasive efforts with his neighbor. George Washington. Father of our Country. Then in retirement at Mount Vernon with no interest to reenter public life after resigning his commission following the Revolutionary War. He could have been king then but declined the numerous offers to make him so. Happy that they won their independence he just wanted to live out his years on his farm. Like Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus. Who left his plough to become dictator of the Roman Republic. To defend the Roman Republic. He defeated the enemy. Resigned his dictatorship. And returned to his plough. Earning a cherished place in our history books. Something Washington had just done. Only taking some 8 years instead of 16 days like Cincinnatus. His place in history had come with a far greater price. And he did not want to risk losing what he had earned after paying so dearly for it. But Madison knew that it would take Washington’s presence to get the other states to send their delegates. So Madison was persistent. The Father of the Constitution nudged the Father of the Country out of retirement. And made the retired general do the last thing he wanted to do. Return to public life. As he was already an old man who outlived the average lifespan of Washington men.

Madison didn’t believe a Bill of Rights would Stop a Majority from Imposing their Will on the Minority

It took four long, miserable months to produce the new constitution. It was a hot and insufferable summer. And they kept the windows of Independence Hall closed to block out the city noise. And prevent anyone from hearing the debates. So the delegates could speak freely. And after those four long months the delegates signed the new document. Not all of them. Some hated it and refused to sign it or support it. And would actively fight against it during the ratification process. As they did not like to see so much power going to a new federal government. Especially as there was no bill of rights included to help protect the people from this new government. The document they produced was based on the Virginia Plan. Which was drafted by James Madison. Which is why we call him the Father of the Constitution. So Virginia was instrumental in producing the new constitution. And the delegates finally agreed to it because of another Virginian. George Washington. Making Virginian ratification of the new constitution conditional for other states to ratify it. So all eyes were on Virginia. For without Virginia all their efforts in Philadelphia would be for naught. Because if Virginia did not join the union under the new Constitution that meant George Washington would be ineligible to be president.

Of course getting Virginia to ratify was another story. Because George Washington and James Madison were not the only Virginians in politics. There was also George Mason. Who wrote the Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776). Which Thomas Jefferson may have borrowed from when writing the Declaration of Independence. And Mason also wrote the Virginia State Constitution (1776). Mason opposed granting the new federal government so much power and refused to sign the Constitution in Philadelphia. And then there was Patrick Henry. Perhaps the greatest Patriot orator. And of “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” fame. Which he shouted out during the Stamp Act (1765) debates. He was also Virginia’s first governor under the new state constitution. Mason and Henry were Patriots of the 1776 school. The kind that hated distant central powers. Whether they were in London. Or in New York. Mason wanted a bill of rights. Henry, too. As well as amendments transferring a lot of power from the federal government back to the states. Or, better yet, no federal constitution at all. Which Henry would work towards by leading a fierce ratification opposition.

Perhaps the greatest flaw of the new constitution as many saw was the lack of a bill of rights. This was a contentious issue during the convention. It was the reason why Mason refused to sign it. As there was nothing to check the powers of the new government and protect the people’s liberties. So why did they not include a bill of rights? Because it was not necessary. According to Madison. Who fought against it. Because the new federal government was a government of limited powers. It wasn’t like the state governments. The new federal government only did those things the states didn’t do. Or shouldn’t do. Like treat with other nations. Provide a common defense. Regulate interstate trade. Things that expanded beyond a state’s borders. And what powers it had were enumerated. Limited. It did not repeal individual rights protected by state constitutions. And had no authority over those rights. Whatever rights a person enjoyed in their state were untouchable by the new federal government. Therefore, a bill of rights was not necessary. Which actually protected rights greater than listing them. For whatever rights they forgot to list the federal government would assume were fair to abuse. Finally, Madison didn’t believe a bill of rights would stop a majority from imposing their will on the minority. A tyranny of the majority. Something he saw firsthand as a young man returning from college. Where the state of Virginia harassed and imprisoned Baptist ministers for holding Baptist services in Anglican Virginia. Something he didn’t forget. Nor did the Baptists.

If James Madison were Alive Today he would Likely Endorse the Republican Candidates Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan

Patrick tried hard to prevent the ratification of the constitution in Virginia. But failed. When it came time for the Virginian legislature to elect their federal senators Henry campaigned hard against Madison and saw him defeated. When it came to the federal House elections Henry drew the new Congressional districts that made Madison campaign in a district full of people that mostly disagreed with him. Which it took a change of his position on adding a bill of rights to the Constitution to overcome. His position gradually changed from opposed to being lukewarm to being a strong supporter. In part due to some correspondence with Thomas Jefferson then serving in France. And the Baptists’ concerns over rights of conscience. Something Madison had longed believed in. Believing religious liberty was essential to a free people. As the Constitution stood there were no safeguards specifically against the oppression like that the Anglicans imposed on the Baptists earlier. What the Baptists wanted was a bill of rights.

Madison promised, if elected, to introduce an amendment to the Constitution addressing their concerns. In fact, a bill of rights would be the first Constitutional amendment. And he would introduce it and fight for it until it was ratified. Based on this promise the Baptists threw their support behind Madison. Got him elected to the House of Representatives. And Madison delivered on his promise. Championing a bill of rights through Congress. The Father of the Constitution also became the Father of the Bill of Rights. And then it was a knockdown drag-out fight in the Virginian legislature to get the new Bill of Rights ratified. Where the opposition to ratification was led by none other than Patrick Henry. But he would lose that fight, too. And the nation would have a federal government with limited, enumerated powers. With individual liberties protected by a bill of rights. Providing a federal government powerful enough to do the things it needed to do like treat with other nations, provide a common defense, regulate interstate trade, etc. Those things that expanded beyond a state’s borders. And in the following decade we would be prosperous because of it.

None of this could have happened without Virginia’s ratification of the Constitution. Which opened the door for George Washington to be our first president. And helped New York ratify the Constitution. With the ratification in Virginia. And the letter writing campaign in support of ratification. Which appeared in newspapers. Articles written by James Madison and Alexander Hamilton (mostly) and John Jay. Now published as the Federalists Papers. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Madison and Hamilton the nation had a new form of government. But Madison and Hamilton would soon part ways once Hamilton was Secretary of the Treasury. And took great liberties with the necessary and proper clause of the Constitution. Expanding the power and scope of the federal government far beyond what Madison had ever envisioned. Which moved Madison into closer company with George Mason and Patrick Henry. Desperately trying to hold onto states’ rights and oppose the expansion of the federal government. Like he would oppose the great overreach of the federal government today. The transfer of power from the states to the federal government. And the expansion of suffrage to include those who don’t own property or pay taxes. Leading to mob rule at times. Populism. And a tyranny of the majority.

Madison suffered ill health most of his life. Stomach disorders and dysentery. Brought on by the pressures of public service. If he were alive today he probably wouldn’t remain alive long. Seeing what has happened to his Constitution would probably kill him. If he had the chance to vote today he would vote for the party that championed limited government. The party that would stop the growth of the federal government. And reduce its size. The party that governed for all people and not the will of the populist mob. The party that did NOT govern through class warfare but through sound principles. If James Madison were alive today he would likely endorse the Republican candidates Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan.

Politics 101

Hamilton trusted Men of Integrity to Govern Justly while Jefferson believed Money and Power would Corrupt Anyone

Nasty politics began back in the Washington administration. With the seething hatred between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. These American greats had two different visions for America. Based on their background. Hamilton’s from his experience in the Continental Army and his business experience. Jefferson’s from his books. As different as their views for America were, and despite their hatred for each other, they both loved their country. And wanted what was best for their country. While absolutely sure that the other had nefarious plans for its ruin.

Both were students of the Enlightenment. Both believed in the natural, God-given rights of the people. And both believed vehemently in the rule of law. In fact, both were lawyers. But Hamilton was part of the Continental Army when its troops were barefoot, half-naked and starving. Which were barefoot, half-naked and starving because of a weak Continental Congress that could not provide for them. Because they were weak, impotent and could not levy taxes. All they could do was ask the states to give them money. The states promised little. And delivered even less. Threatening the American Revolution itself.

Jefferson, on the other hand, saw that history was replete with examples of corruption and oppression whenever financial centers and the seat of power got too close. Hamilton may have seen this. But what he was most conscious of was the British Empire. The greatest empire in the world. Which became the greatest empire in the world by bringing the financial centers and the seat of power together. Which is what Hamilton wanted to do. Trusting in the integrity and moral character of gentlemen of the Enlightenment. Who would rule with selfless indifference. Principled men with strong Judeo-Christian values. These were the men that would rule America. Men like the Founding Fathers. Who they could trust with money and power. Who America should trust with money and power. To make an American Empire to surpass the British Empire. This is what Hamilton wanted. While Jefferson believed that money and power would corrupt anyone. If not in their generation then surely in the generations to follow. And the best way to prevent this was by giving government as little money and power as possible.

An Outbreak of Yellow Fever in Philadelphia nearly settled the Quarrel between Hamilton and Jefferson

So Jefferson opposed Hamilton at every opportunity. Such as the Bank of the United States. And Hamilton’s funding system. Making matters worse was that Hamilton’s Treasury Department was the largest department in the federal government. While Jefferson’s State Department was one of the smallest. So Jefferson tried to transfer some parts of Treasury to his State Department. The Post Office. Which he failed in getting. But he did succeed in transferring the Mint from Treasury to State. Hamilton even learned that James Madison and Jefferson met with Robert Livingston and Aaron Burr to conspire against Hamilton to remove him from office. Hamilton saw an ambitious Jefferson. Who wanted the kind of power Jefferson accused Hamilton wanted for himself.

So these gentlemen began a campaign to force the other from office. Hamilton had an ally in the Gazette of the United States who championed his policies. To counter Jefferson hired Philip Freneau into the State Department to help finance a new paper. The National Gazette. Whose sole purpose was to attack Hamilton while praising everything Jeffersonian. Hamilton wrote anonymous attacks published in the Gazette of the United States. While Jefferson left his dirty work to Freneau. And the attacks grew uglier. The attacks were not just on policy or the future vision of the nation. But these were personal attacks on each other. Where accuracy was not a major requirement. Such as when Hamilton took Jefferson out of context. Quoting selective excerpts from a 1787 letter to suggest that Jefferson wanted to rob the Dutch to repay the French. Hamilton and Jefferson became like two quarreling children in Washington’s cabinet. Each running to ‘father’ tattling on the other. Insisting that Washington demand the resignation of the other.

An outbreak of yellow fever in Philadelphia nearly settled the question. By almost killing Hamilton. But he survived. Unlike some 4,000 others in Philadelphia. Even Hamilton’s illness was seen through a political lens. Hamilton sought the medical advice from an old college buddy. As opposed to following the good advice of Dr. Benjamin Rush. Who recommended massive bloodlettings. When Hamilton recovered he publically thanked his friend (who had nothing to do with his recovery) and encouraged others to follow his recommended treatment. Which didn’t include bloodletting. Dr. Rush was infuriated. Accusing Hamilton of killing countless others through this quackery instead of the sensible bloodletting that was established medical practice. Of course, this was a personal attack on Dr. Rush. Because he was not a Federalist. But a Republican. And a friend of James Madison and Thomas Jefferson.

While the French were causing Headaches for Jefferson and his Republicans the British were doing the same to Hamilton and his Federalists

The yellow fever also claimed another casualty. The National Gazette. As people fled Philadelphia, or died, circulation fell. And the paper lost money and closed shop. About the same time that happened Jefferson resigned from the cabinet. And returned to Monticello. Things were looking up for Hamilton. Until the reverberations of the French Revolution further divided the country. The Federalists were reestablishing trade with the British. So when the French and British were back at war with each other it caused some problems in America. For the American people still hated Britain. While having deep emotional ties to the country that had helped them win their independence. France. The United States had proclaimed their neutrality in this new war. But being a maritime nation dependent on exports her best interests lay with Great Britain and the most powerful navy in the world. Which further proved that Hamilton and his Federalists were secret monarchists. And that Hamilton wanted to be king.

Meanwhile, the French had sent their new ambassador to America. Citizen Genêt. Who Jefferson, the Republicans and the American people welcomed with open arms. But then he started issuing letters of marque to American captains to attack and capture British shipping. Bringing them back to American ports to refit them. Which was a dangerous thing for a neutral nation to do against the nation that kept the sea lanes safe for their commerce. Then Citizen Genêt tried to raise an American army to attack the Spanish in Florida and in New Orleans. With further aims of attacking the British in Canada. This was too much even for Jefferson. And it was one of the few times that Jefferson and Hamilton were in agreement. Citizen Genêt had to go. For Jefferson he was proving to be an embarrassing liability for the Republicans.

While at the same time the British were retaliating. Issuing orders to blockade France and to seize any neutral shipping trying to supply France with corn. Which was pretty much any agricultural grain product. A major export of the United States. So this was a direct blow against U.S. commerce. Even though she was a neutral in this current war between France and Great Britain. This did not make the American people happy. Nor did it help Hamilton or his Federalists with their rapprochement with Britain. Then the British began to seize all shipping going to and from the French West Indies. Which were mostly American ships. So while Citizen Genêt was causing great headaches for Jefferson and his Republicans the British were doing the same to Hamilton and his Federalists. Further dividing the nation. And bringing them closer to war. In large part due to the politics dividing the nation.

Politics 101

America’s First Tax was a 25% Excise Tax on American Whiskey made from Corn

Thomas Jefferson held a dinner party where he, Alexander Hamilton and James Madison met to resolve some issues. Hamilton was stressed out. He was facing strong opposition for his assumption plan. Secretary of the Treasury Hamilton wanted to assume all the states’ debts and lump them into the federal debt. To get the nation’s finances in order. Establish good credit. And raise revenue for the new nation. The Virginians, Jefferson and Madison, offered their assistance if Hamilton would give them the nation’s capital. Hamilton got his assumption. And the Virginians got the nation’s new capital on the Potomac River. Across from Virginia. Where they could keep a close eye on the nation’s business. And everyone lived happily ever after.

Well, not exactly. There was already growing discontent across the land. Hamilton understood business and commerce. And banking. Farmers don’t like bankers. Or commerce. Or business. Many in the south and on the frontier worked the land. As yeoman farmers. Families working small farms that they owned. They believed, as Jefferson believed, that the most honorable work in America was farming. And that America’s future was the growth of farming. Small farms. Owned by families working the land. Yeoman farmers. Proud. Pure. And wholly American. This despite Jefferson being a member of the slave-owning planter elite. Who indulged in little physical labor.

So the south and the frontier were no Hamilton supporters. They didn’t like his high finance ideas for the new nation. And they especially didn’t like his whiskey tax. A tax of 25% on western corn products. Which you made whiskey from. The new American alcoholic beverage of choice after they eschewed beer. The beverage of choice before the rebellion. When they were all content British citizens. But an excise tax on corn products was little different from the excise taxes that caused the colonies to rebel against Great Britain in the first place. Sure, there was one subtle difference this time. The whiskey tax was taxation with representation. And, technically speaking, legal. But on corn? The new tax seemed to fall unfairly on the West. Which had a corn economy. And used the whiskey they made from it for money. So these frontier people were not just going to sit idly by and take this new taxation without a fight.

The Washington Administration took Decisive Action in Suppressing the Whiskey Rebellion

This first tax was to help finance Hamilton’s assumption. But it was more important than the revenue it would raise. The whiskey tax was a matter of principle. It was probably poor policy. And probably not the smartest thing to do. Picking a fight with the toughest and most fiercely independent people in the country. Frontier people. Who lived off the land without any of the city comforts enjoyed back east. But the tax was the law. And the first test of the new nation. If the government retreated in the face of opposition to a law passed by Congress their experiment in self-government would fail. For as unpleasant as taxation was it was the reason they formed a new nation in 1787. To levy taxes so they could pay their past debt. And their current bills. So President Washington and Hamilton hunkered down on the tax.

And the riots came. The Whiskey Rebellion. Around Pittsburg. Kentucky (aka bourbon country). The backcountry of the Carolinas. And elsewhere. They refused to pay the tax. And attacked the tax collecting apparatus. Even the courts. It was war. The spirit of ’76 was alive again. Protesting a distant central power trying to impose a tax on them. Washington offered amnesty if they just dispersed and went home. They refused. So Washington raised an army of some 13,000 strong. Larger than any army he commanded during the Revolutionary War. And led the army west with Hamilton to meet the insurrection. The first and only time a sitting president led an army. As the army approached resistance melted away. So Washington handed command over to Henry “Lighthorse Harry” Lee (a Revolutionary War veteran and hero) and returned to the capital in Philadelphia. Hamilton remained with the army. As the army arrived the insurrection collapsed. The army caught some rebels and tried them. And two received death sentences. Who Washington later pardoned.

Score one for the rule of law. Washington was pleased with the outcome. Hamilton, too. They took decisive action to subdue an insurrection. The people in general were happy that they restored peace. And that the country didn’t collapse into anarchy. All in all a win-win for the people and the government. Almost. Not everyone saw it in this light. Some saw a king leading an army against his own people. A professional army. Little different from British redcoats. Or Oliver Cromwell’s New Model Army a century or so earlier. A professional standing army squashing those who disagreed with the government. And Jefferson did not like it. Nor did a lot of those in the south. Or on the frontier.

President Washington issued a Proclamation of Neutrality in the New War between Great Britain and France

Seeing Hamilton ride at the head of an army only reinforced Jefferson’s opinion of him. A power-hungry, British-loving puppet master. And the puppet was President Washington. The dislike between Hamilton and Jefferson turned into outright hostility. They had two different visions of America. And these two visions were mutually exclusive. Cabinet meetings became insufferable as Hamilton and Jefferson constantly fought. And the French Revolution didn’t help matters any. The radical Jefferson supported the radical French. Who he knew and sat with in the Jacobin clubs while he was in France. Jefferson was all for overthrowing monarchies. So when the French and British declared war on each other it was a no brainer who to support for Jefferson. Vive la France!

Of course there was only one problem with that position. About 75% of U.S. exports went to Great Britain. Even more of her imports (approximately 90%) came from Great Britain. And then there was the Royal Navy (RN). Who still ruled the high seas. And all the international trade routes. In addition to the RN there was the British Army. Who still occupied forts on the American western frontier. And who were still in contact with their Indian allies from the Revolutionary War. Couple this with the fact that the U.S. had no comparable army or navy. And was already having trouble on the frontier with the Indians (from the influx of settlers into the western territories). So siding with France against Britain was not the smart move. Yes, the French were instrumental in helping the Americans achieve their independence from Great Britain. But America was a country emerging from 8 years of war that just had to suppress a tax rebellion over a sin tax. She did not have the wealth to enter a European war. Besides, the Americans were supported by the monarch (King Louis XVI) the French were overthrowing. Which complicated matters.

Washington and Hamilton saw things differently than Jefferson. More like realists than the idealist Jefferson. The Revolution was over. The British and Americans were no longer enemies. But important trade partners. That shared a common British past. Of laws and traditions firmly established in what was once British America. So Washington issued his Proclamation of Neutrality (1793). They would support neither in this European war. Which infuriated the French. And Jefferson. For though they were neutral it was clear that their neutrality would favor the British. As well as Hamilton. And it did. But it also favored America’s best interests. For another long war would have probably bankrupted the nation. And perhaps resulted with her partitioned among the European nations. For the French Revolution lasted for a decade. And the Napoleonic Wars it begot lasted another 11 years. Which let us not forget the French lost. In large part due to the Royal Navy. And Great Britain’s wealth generated by her international trade. Something the Americans could not have altered had she entered the war on France’s side. A wise foreign policy call by President Washington (and yet another time he saved his country). But it was one that tore his administration apart. Firmly establishing the opposition party. With Jefferson at its head. With but one purpose. To destroy Hamilton. And to lead the nation away from where Hamilton was taking it.

Politics 101

In 1792 the Outstanding Debt at all Levels of Government was 45% of GDP

Wars aren’t cheap. Especially if they last awhile. The American Revolutionary War lasted some 8 years until the British and Americans signed the Treaty of Paris (1782) officially ending all hostilities. So the Revolutionary War was a very costly war. The ‘national’ government (the Continental Congress) owed about $70 million. The states owed another $25 million or so. And the Continental Army had issued about $7 million in IOUs during the war. Added up that comes to $102 million the new nation owed. About 45% of GDP. (Or about 35% without the state debt added in.)

To put that in perspective consider that the Civil War raised the debt to about 32% of GDP. World War I raised it to about 35%. World War II raised it to about 122%. Following the war the debt fell to about 32% at its lowest point until it started rising again. And quickly. In large part due to the cost of the Vietnam War and LBJ’s Great Society. Government spending being so great Nixon turned to printing money. Depreciating the dollar’s purchasing power in every commodity but one. Gold. Which was pegged at $35/ounce. Losing faith in our currency foreign governments traded their U.S. dollars for gold. Until Nixon decoupled the dollar from gold in 1971. Ushering in the era of Keynesian economics, deficit spending and growing national debts. Because of increased spending for social programs governments everywhere now have debts approaching 100% of GDP. And higher. But I digress.

So 45% of GDP was huge in 1792. And it continued to be huge. Taking a devastating civil war and a devastating world war to even approach it. It took an even more devastating world war to exceed it. And now we’ve blown by that debt level in the era of Keynesian economics. Without the devastation of another World War II. This debt level has grown so great that for the first time ever in U.S. history Standard and Poor’s recently lowered the United States’ impeccable sovereign debt rating. And restoring that debt rating at today’s spending levels will be a daunting task. But imagine trying to establish a sovereign debt rating after just becoming a nation. Already with a massive debt of 45% of GDP.

In Hamilton’s Report on Public Credit the New Government would Assume Outstanding Debt at all Levels of Government

There was only one choice for America’s first president. The indispensible one. George Washington. Some delegates at the Philadelphia Convention in 1787 who were skeptical of the new Constitution only supported it because they had someone they could trust to be America’s first president. George Washington. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison were indispensible at times. But not as indispensible as Washington. For without him the Continental Army would have ceased to exist after that winter at Valley Forge. That same army would have mutinied (for back pay and promised pensions) after the war if he didn’t step in. Our experiment in self-government would have ended if he did not relinquish his power after the war. We wouldn’t have ratified the Constitution without having Washington to be America’s first president. And our experiment in self-government would have ended if he did not relinquish his power. Again. After his second term as president.

With the state of the government’s finances after the war there was another Founding Father that was indispensible. Not as indispensible as Washington. But close. For without him the Washington presidency may have failed. As well as the new nation. Because of that convoluted financial mess. The Continental Congress borrowed money. The states borrowed money. Some of which went to the Continental Congress. The army took stuff they needed to survive in exchange for IOUs. There were bonds, loans and IOUs at every level of government in every state. Complicating the matter is that most of the instruments they sold ended up in the hands of speculators who bought them for pennies on the dollar. As the original holders of these instruments needed money. And did not believe the Continental Congress would honor any of these obligations. For before the Constitution the government was weak and had no taxing authority. And no way to raise the funds to redeem these debt obligations.

A few tried to get their arms around this financial mess. But couldn’t. It was too great a task. Until America’s first secretary of the treasury came along. Alexander Hamilton. Who could bring order to the chaos. As well as fund the new federal government. He submitted his plan in his Report on Public Credit (January 1790). And the big thing in it was assumption. The federal government would assume outstanding debt at all levels of government. Including those IOUs. At face value. One hundred pennies on the dollar. To whoever held these instruments. Regardless of who bought them first. “Unfair!” some said. But what else could they do? This was the 1700s. There weren’t detailed computer records of bondholders. Besides, this was a nation that, like the British, protected property rights. These speculators took a risk buying these instruments. Even if at pennies on the dollar. They bought them for a price the seller thought was fair or else they wouldn’t have sold them. So these bonds were now the property of the speculators.

Jefferson and Madison traded Hamilton’s Assumption for the Nation’s Capital

Of course to do this you needed money. Which Hamilton wanted to raise by issuing new bonds. To retire the old. And to service the new. Thus establishing good credit. In fact, he wanted a permanent national debt. For he said, “A national debt, if not excessive, is a national blessing.” Because good credit would allow a nation to borrow money for economic expansion. And it would tie the people with the money to the government. Where the risk of a government default would harm both the nation and their creditors. Making their interests one and the same.

That’s not how Thomas Jefferson saw it, though. He had just returned from France where he witnessed the beginning of the French Revolution. Brought upon by a crushing national debt. And he didn’t want to tie the people with the money to the government. For when they do they tend to exert influence over the government. But Hamilton said debt was a blessing if not excessive. He did not believe in excessive government debt. And he wanted to pay that debt off. As his plan called for a sinking fund to retire that debt. Still, the Jefferson and Hamilton feud began here. For Hamilton’s vision of the new federal government was just too big. And too British. Madison would join Jefferson to lead an opposition party. Primarily in opposition to anything Hamilton. Who used the Constitution to support his other plan. A national bank. Just like the British had. Based on the “necessary and proper” clause in Article I, Section 8. Setting a precedent that government would use again and again to expand its powers.

At the time the nation’s capital was temporarily in New York. A final home for it, though, was a contentious issue. Everyone wanted it in their state so they could greatly influence the national government. Hamilton’s struggle for assumption was getting nowhere. Until the horse-trading at the Jefferson dinner party with Hamilton and Madison. To get the nation’s capital close to Virginia (where it is now) Jefferson offered a deal to Hamilton. Jefferson and Madison were Virginians. Give them the capital and they would help pass assumption. They all agreed to the deal (though Jefferson would later regret it). Congress passed the Residency Act putting the capital on the Potomac. And all the good that Hamilton promised happened. America established good credit. Allowing it to borrow money at home and abroad. And a decade of prosperity followed. Hamilton even paid down the federal debt to about 17.5% of GDP near the end of America’s second president’s (John Adams) term in office (1800). Making Hamilton indispensible in sustaining this experiment in self-government. Keeping government small even though it was more powerful than it was ever before. Of course his using that “necessary and proper” argument really came back to bite him in the ass. Figuratively, of course. As government used it time and again to expand its role into areas even Hamilton would have fought to prevent. While Jefferson no doubt would have said with haughty contempt, “I told you so. This is what happens when you bring money and government together. But would you listen to me? No. How I hate you, Mr. Hamilton.”

Politics 101

Washington looked upon Hamilton, Madison and Jefferson as the Sons he Never Had

With the new Constitution ratified it was time to put the grand experiment into action. Beginning with America’s first presidential election. And the system we now call the Electoral College. Each state chose their electors. These electors then voted for the president. Even this first act of the new federal government was a safeguard to keep its power limited. (And independent of the Congress.) By keeping the new republican government from becoming a democracy. The mob-rule that was the ruin of republics. By putting intermediaries between the people and the most powerful person in America. The president. To prevent anyone rising to power simply by promising to shower riches on the people from the federal treasury.

George Washington did something no one has done since. He received 100% of the vote. Every elector voted for him for president. Unanimously. John Adams came in second. Each elector had two votes. One to cast for president. The other to cast for vice president. The one with the greatest number of votes was president. The one with the next most votes became vice president. As this was a time before party politics. There were no political parties yet. But there would be. And that would change the way we voted for president.

Both Washington and Adams were Federalists. They both supported the Constitution. And the federal government. As did the other Federalists. Including Alexander Hamilton. Who Washington selected as secretary of the treasury. And would be a major player in the Federalist camp. His fellow Federalist, James Madison, who coauthored the Federalist Papers with Hamilton (and John Jay) won election to the House of Representative. Where he introduced and fought for passage of the Bill of Rights. Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence, was in Europe during the Philadelphia Convention and the ratification process of the Constitution. But he supported it as long as it included a bill of rights. Washington selected Jefferson for his secretary of state. Washington looked upon Hamilton, Madison and Jefferson as the sons he never had. And loved them as sons. But that would change.

Born out of Wedlock Hamilton was Never Accepted by those ‘Better’ than Him

Washington being the first president everything he did set a precedent. And he was very conscious of that. As well as his place in history. For he wanted to be remembered as America’s first president of many to come. Not the man who was at the helm when this experiment in self-government failed. This is why he created a cabinet quickly. Even though the Constitution included nothing about a cabinet. After commanding the Continental Army for 8 years he knew how to give orders and delegate authority. And after battling Congress during those same years he became a good administrator who understood how to compromise. He hated politics. But he understood politics. And knew it meant compromise on the little things. And standing resolute on the bigger things.

Hamilton was Washington’s aide-de-camp during the war. He was smart and understood commerce. During the war he wrote to Congress about the ruinous inflation crippling the economy. And starving the army. Proposing a national bank back then. Washington trusted and respected Hamilton. And valued his counsel. Which is why he made him his secretary of treasury. The country was in a mess. In debt. And it needed a plan to raise revenue. To pay for government. And to service that debt. Even just to understand the debt. For money was owed at every level of government. Which was what prompted the Philadelphia Convention in the first place. To put the nation on a sound footing to move forward. And there wasn’t a better person available than Hamilton. Who remains even today America’s greatest treasury secretary.

Hamilton was brilliant. And he had grand plans for the United States. He saw the potential in the new nation. And he wanted to use the power of government to hurry it along. He was also aggressive. And combative. Born out of wedlock he was never accepted by those ‘better’ than him. So he spent a lifetime fighting this social stigma. Acquiring a competitive nature. Making him unpopular. And obstinate. He fought long and hard for what he wanted. Knowing that he was right. And others were wrong. Even though this may have been true at times it tended to be off-putting. So Hamilton would spend his political career making political enemies. And it started in the Washington administration.

After Hamilton’s Three Reports James Madison parted ways with Hamilton and became an Anti-Federalist

While the Americans were setting up their first national government France was well along the way to the French Revolution. And Thomas Jefferson was there. Returning to the United States the same year of the Tennis Court Oath and the Storming of the Bastille (1789). The French had a taste of liberty from helping the Americans. And now they wanted it, too. France was drowning in debt. A bad growing season caused some famine. The people were restless. Poor. Angry. And sick of the monarchy. Jefferson felt the spirit of ’76 again. He joined the conversations in the clubs where the radicals met. Enjoying their company. Sharing their hate of monarchy. Despite the French Monarchy having financed most of the American Revolution. And provided much of the material to wage war. Didn’t matter. The people’s spirit inflamed him, too. And he brought that spirit home with him. Upon arrival Washington asked him to join his cabinet. He accepted. And the head butting began.

It started with Hamilton’s three reports. The Report on Public Credit (January 1790). The Report on a National Bank (December 1790). And the Report on Manufactures (December 1791). Taken together they kind of looked like a plan to turn the United States into another Great Britain. At least to Jefferson, Madison and anti-Federalists everywhere. What they saw was a nation with lots of debt, where the rich get a little too cozy with the politicians and the financiers reach deep into the halls of government. That wasn’t Hamilton’s intent. Other than wanting to accelerate the Industrial Revolution in American to the level it was in Britain. The subject of his third report. Which was a bit mercantilist in nature like Britain. But the other two were about establishing good credit. To gain the trust of the credit markets. For a country in debt had to be able to borrow money to service that debt. As well as pay for government. Putting the nation on that sound footing to move forward. Which he did. He lowered the per capita debt. And the nation would go on to enjoy a decade of peace and prosperity thanks to his economic policies.

After Hamilton’s three reports came the great schism. James Madison parted ways with Hamilton. Becoming an anti-Federalist. Along with Thomas Jefferson. While still a member of the Federalist administration of George Washington (though he didn’t label himself a Federalist or join in any partisan action). Cabinet meetings became insufferable. As Hamilton and Jefferson just hated each other. Who could only behave in the presence of their ‘father’. George Washington. But the partisan attacks took to the newspapers. Lies and slander flew with regularity. From both directions. Even attacking Washington. Jefferson eventually left the administration but continued his attacks through his surrogate James Madison. The attacks on Washington got so ugly that he never spoke to Jefferson again. Who turned into a radical partisan. Washington was never happier when his second term ended. The new president was John Adams. Federalist. His vice president was Thomas Jefferson. Leader of the anti-Federalists. Who became the new Democrat-Republicans. Which is why they had to change the election process for president. So the president and the vice president belonged to the same political party. So they worked together instead of leading the attack against each other and their party.

Politics 101

The People trusted no One Man with Great Power except, of course, George Washington

America had a new constitution. It wasn’t easy. For the American states covered a lot of geography. And ideology. These were a very different people. Who had only joined together in union to resist their common enemy. Great Britain. But now that common enemy was no more. What now? These delegates who worked behind closed doors for 4 months in some of the hottest and most humid weather had done the best they could. It was less a triumph of solidarity than the recognition that this was the best anyone was going to do considering how vast and disparate the people were. So now it was up to the states to ratify it. But would they?

Good question. For there was a lot of opposition to transferring power, any power, from the states to a new central authority. They had just cut the ties to one king. And they didn’t do this just to submit to another king. Of course, America would have no king. For they would simply call their new executive president. But it was still one man. And many feared that this one man given some power may take more power. So whoever the first president was had to be one of impeccable character and integrity. A true Patriot. One whose Revolutionary credentials were beyond questioning. Someone who was in the struggle for independence from the beginning and never wavered in the cause. Someone the people universally loved. And respected. Of course that could be but one man. George Washington.

This is why we call George Washington the Father of our Country. For without him there would have been no country. For the people trusted no one man with great power. But they trusted Washington. And respected him. Would even have made him king they trusted him so. So because Washington was available to be the first president the delegates in Philadelphia signed the new Constitution. For all their sectional differences this was one area where everyone agreed. They were willing to risk having this new central government because they trusted it in the hands of this one man. George Washington.

When Patrick Henry and George Mason opposed the new Constitution it was Doubtful Virginia would Vote for Ratification

Of course they weren’t just going to hand the presidency to Washington. But the electors in the Electoral College simply weren’t going to have a better candidate to vote for. Washington didn’t want the job. He just wanted to enjoy retirement on his farm before he died. And based on the longevity of Washington men he was already living on borrowed time. But he would serve. Again. Because he fought too long and too hard to see the new nation collapse before it could even become a nation. And he had no illusions about how horrible the job would be. It was one thing giving orders in the Continental Army where people did what he told them. But it was another dealing with Congress during the war. Who couldn’t accomplish anything for the spirit of liberty. As the states tended to look more after their own interests than the army fighting for their liberty. Leaving his army barefoot, half naked and starving during the winter at Valley Forge. And through most of the war.

So, no, being the president wasn’t going to give him the peace and serenity he could find under his vine and fig tree at home. It would just put him closer to the partisan bickering. But he was willing to sacrifice his own wants and desires yet again. To serve the people. But would the people want him? For it wasn’t up to the delegates at the Constitutional Convention. All they could do was make their case to the people. Then let the people decide if they wanted this new government. And perhaps the most critical state was Virginia. Which not only gave us George Washington. But George Mason. Patrick Henry. Thomas Jefferson. And James Madison.

Patrick Henry said, “Give me liberty or give me death!” He was a great orator whose speeches could awe listeners. He dripped Patriotism (even refused to attend the Philadelphia Convention as he feared it would lead to monarchy). So did George Mason. His Virginia Declaration of Rights (1776) no doubt inspired his fellow Virginian, Thomas Jefferson, who studied the same philosophers as Mason did. So when Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence you could read some Virginia Declaration of Rights in it. So his Revolutionary credentials were solid. So when Henry and Mason opposed the new Constitution (Mason was a delegate at the convention but refused to sign it) it cast doubt over whether Virginia would ratify the new Constitution.

George Mason and Patrick Henry joined James Madison in fighting for Ratification of the Bill of Rights

Mason supported republican government. But he didn’t trust a large republican government. Not without a bill of rights. Which is why he refused to sign the Constitution at the convention. James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, argued against any bill of rights. For he did not think it was needed. For the Constitution enumerated the powers of the federal government. Citing specifically what it could do. And whatever wasn’t specifically enumerated they couldn’t do. Madison feared if they included a bill of rights that it could backfire on them later. For someone would argue that the Constitution stated the government can’t do A, B and C. But it didn’t say anything about D. So clearly the federal government can do D because it wasn’t included in the list of things it couldn’t do. Madison saw that if you listed some rights you must list all rights. Which changes the Constitution from forbidding the federal government from doing anything not enumerated to something that allows the government do whatever it wants as long as it is not listed in a bill of rights.

For some, though, a bill of rights was conditional for ratification. George Mason simply wouldn’t vote for ratification unless the Constitution included a bill of rights. Even Thomas Jefferson wrote Madison from Europe urging him to include a bill of rights. The tide of Virginian opinion appeared to be against him on the issue. And Madison needed Virginia. For if Virginia didn’t ratify the chances were slim for ratification in other states. Which did not bode well for the country. Because of how vast and disparate the people were. The northern states weren’t like the southern states. And neither was like the western territory. If there was no union the north would probably form a confederation. And being a maritime region they’d probably seek out closer ties to Great Britain and their Royal Navy. With some of the bloodiest fighting in the south perpetrated by the British and their Loyalist allies this would probably align the southern states to Britain’s eternal enemy. France. With two of Europe’s greatest powers entrenched in the east the western territories would probably align with that other European power. Spain. Who controlled the mouth of the Mississippi River. The gateway to the world for western agriculture. Turning America into another Europe. Wars and all.

Madison worked tirelessly for ratification. Working with Alexander Hamilton and John Jay on a series of articles published in newspapers making the case for ratification. Later bound together into the Federalist Papers. And then changing his stand on a bill of rights. Promising to include a bill of rights as the first order of business for the new federal congress. This brought George Mason around. He even helped Madison on the bill of rights. Which helped tip Virginia towards ratification despite a fierce opposition led by Patrick Henry. But after ratification he, too, helped Madison pass the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. The Bill of Rights. Which Madison delivered during the first Congress as promised. And then worked tirelessly for its ratification.